ScienceDaily: Top Science News

One of the most contentious questions in evolutionary biology is, how did the Amazon become so rich in species? A new study focused on birds examines how the movements of rivers in the Amazon have contributed to that area's exceptional biological diversity. The researchers found that as small river systems change over time, they spur the evolution of new species. The findings also reveal previously unknown bird species in the Amazon that are only found in small areas next to these dynamic river systems, putting them at high risk.

New research shows how the impact that created the Moon's South Pole -- Aitken basin is linked to the stark contrast in composition and appearance between the two sides of the Moon.

Researchers have uncovered how Gram-negative bacteria -- which cause a variety of drug-resistant infections -- build their protective outer layer, which could lead to more effective treatments.

Scientists have developed a new technique for rejuvenating skin cells. This technique has allowed researchers to rewind the cellular biological clock by around 30 years according to molecular measures, significantly longer than previous reprogramming methods. The partially rejuvenated cells showed signs of behaving more like youthful cells in experiments simulating a skin wound. This research, although in early stages, could eventually have implications for regenerative medicine, especially if it can be replicated in other cell types.

In a new study, engineers describe a major breakthrough in the design of a component of transistors -- the tiny electrical switches that form the building blocks of computers -- that could significantly reduce their energy consumption without sacrificing speed, size or performance.

Our universe is a chaotic sea of ripples in space-time called gravitational waves. Astronomers think waves from orbiting pairs of supermassive black holes in distant galaxies are light-years long and have been trying to observe them for decades, and now they're one step closer.

Ocean water samples collected around the world have yielded a treasure trove of new data about RNA viruses, expanding ecological research possibilities and reshaping our understanding of how these small but significant submicroscopic particles evolved.

Scientists have achieved the most precise measurement to date of the mass of the W boson, one of nature's force-carrying particles. The measured value shows tension with the value expected based on the Standard Model of particle physics.

An international team of astronomers has spotted the most distant astronomical object ever: a galaxy. Shining only ~300 million years after the Big Bang, it may be home to the oldest stars in the universe, or a supermassive black hole.

A powerful radio-wave laser, called a 'megamaser', has been observed by the MeerKAT telescope in South Africa. The record-breaking find is the most distant megamaser of its kind ever detected, at about five billion light years from Earth. The light from the megamaser has traveled 58 thousand billion billion (58 followed by 21 zeros) kilometers to Earth.

The largest ever genetic study of schizophrenia has identified large numbers of specific genes that could play important roles in the psychiatric disorder. A group of hundreds of researchers across 45 countries analysed DNA from 76,755 people with schizophrenia and 243,649 without it to better understand the genes and biological processes underpinning the condition. The new study found a much larger number of genetic links to schizophrenia than ever before, in 287 different regions of the genome, the human body's DNA blueprint.

Astronomers have discovered bloated Jupiter-sized worlds that are so precariously close to their parent star they are being roasted at seething temperatures above 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. That's hot enough to vaporize most metals, including titanium. They have the hottest planetary atmospheres ever seen. Hubble astronomers are reporting on bizarre weather conditions on these sizzling worlds. It's raining vaporized rock on one planet, and another one has its upper atmosphere getting hotter rather than cooler because it is being 'sunburned' by intense ultraviolet (UV) radiation from its star.

Scientists have observed signs of rejuvenation in the pancreas, liver, spleen, and blood of mice after applying one cycle of cell reprogramming. To achieve this, the researchers have characterized rejuvenation by studying molecular marks in the DNA, gene expression, and cell metabolism.

Scientists have solved a 100-year-old mystery about the evolutionary links between malaria parasites that infect humans and chimpanzees.

Biomedical engineers believe they have discovered the physical mechanism that causes high doses of antibiotics to promote the spread of antibiotic resistance between bacteria. The culprit, they say, is an overabundance of 'jumping genes,' called transposons, that carry the genetic instructions for resistance from the cell's source code to plasmids that shuttle between cells.

What happens when we smell a rose? How does our brain process the essence of its fragrance? Is it like a painting -- a snapshot of the flickering activity of cells -- captured in a moment in time? Or like a symphony, an evolving ensemble of different cells working together to capture the scent? New research suggests that our brain does both.